Tragedy

katec@herald-mail.com Laurence Sharpe, 81, was a college student in Michigan when he heard about the attack on Pearl Harbor in December 1941. He remembers it well. He also recalls exactly where he was when he learned of John F. Kennedy's assassination on Nov. 22, 1963. An editor in the press service of the United States Information Agency in Washington, D.C., he was just going out for lunch. The bells on the United Press International teletype machines began ringing.

CHAMBERSBURG, PA. - The clock tower bell of the Franklin County Courthouse tolled 32 times Tuesday afternoon in memory of the 32 lives lost Monday at Virginia Tech when a student went on a shooting rampage at a dormitory and academic hall. About 50 county employees and others gathered on the courthouse steps for moment of silence. Present were Franklin County Area Development Corp. President Mike Ross and his wife, Donna, whose daughter, Tracy, is a senior at the university. "This event has touched me like no other since 911," Commissioner G. Warren Elliott said.

Jane Arrowood was certain that she was going to be an artist. Then a shark bit off her right arm. Kelly Bingham's novel, "Shark Girl," is the story of what happens next. Jane must deal with the frustrations of excessive pity, gawking stares, and of course, functioning with only one arm. Suddenly, cooking, dressing and grocery shopping are major tasks, and Jane is overwhelmed by everything she's been through. Desperate to draw again, Jane has to learn to put aside her fury at the world and realize that growing stronger from amputation isn't just the stupid garbage everyone is obligated to tell her. Told in newspaper clippings, letters, phone calls, conversations and trains of thought, the book is more like living the experience than reading about it. The story moved me a lot, even as I understood how enraging it would be to be an object of perpetual pity.

Jerome Edwards, a teacher at Williamsport High School, said he believes the nation is at a turning point following the Dec. 14 shootings at a Newtown, Conn., elementary school that left 20 children, six adults and the shooter dead. The tragedy means the country needs to do more about not only keeping students safe, but teachers as well, said Edwards, who attended a vesper service at Trinity Lutheran Church in Smithsburg to help people deal with the tragedy. “It strikes dead at home,” said Edwards, when asked what it felt like to hear the news as a teacher.

The horrific massacre that transpired on April 16 at Virginia Tech is now at the forefront of the collective thoughts of our entire nation. But how long will it remain there? This is not the first tragedy of such magnitude to have occurred, and if we fail to make some important changes, it will not be the last. This tragedy proved that the many safety nets designed to prevent such an event are grossly inadequate. For example, despite shooter Cho Seung-hui's macabre writings and clear outward signs of serious mental illness, he was allowed to remain at the university.

By BRYN MICKLE / Staff Writer, Martinsburg photo: RICHARD T. MEAGHER / staff photographer MARTINSBURG, W.Va. - The congregation inside Winchester Avenue Christian Church looked toward a higher power Tuesday night in an attempt to cope with the aftermath of the deaths of 13 people last week at a Colorado high school. [cont. from news page ] More than 50 people from area schools and churches offered prayers for those affected by the tragedy in Littleton, Colo.

Crisis Intervention Team helps Washington County students By KIMBERLY YAKOWSKI kimy@herald-mail.com Grief and anguish aren't emotions that go away by themselves, according to Paul Wolverton, crisis team leader for Washington County Schools. If people don't talk out their problems, the stress of keeping them inside can show up in illnesses and misbehavior, he said. "Keeping a stiff upper lip is not mentally healthy," he said. Wolverton, heads a 12-member crisis intervention team whose members counsel students, teachers, support staff and administrators in Washington County's schools when a major accident or death connected to the schools occurs.

By DON AINES Staff Writer, Martinsburg MARTINSBURG, W.Va. - In the aftermath of a tragedy such as the apparent slaying of Jessica Lynn Newell, schools in Berkeley County can look to a group of professionals to help with the emotional trauma that can result. The Berkeley County Crisis Intervention Team was created a decade ago to come into the schools and assist when a tragedy strikes. Community Relations Director Mary Jo Brown said the school system began the process Friday, the day after Newell disappeared from Pikeside Bowl.

Make your choices with care To the editor: I think the publication of the huge front-page article about the young man who died at the Washington County Detention Center, on the day of his viewing and the eve of his burial was tasteless, thoughtless and suspect. There are hurting and grieving family and friends who have enough to deal with at this time. How newsworthy was this to anyone who did not know him? Interestingly, the first report of his death was a small article mentioned in the police log section of the paper.

"Note to the taxpayers of Greencastle-Antrim Township: The school board meets Thursday, Jan. 20, at 6 p.m. in the middle school library. Let them know what you think of their tax increase. "    — Greencastle, Pa.       "I had to literally laugh out loud the other day, after reading in Mail Call about President Obama signing a bill and had to use a lot of different pens. Someone please tell that person the reason. Just proves one thing: People don't know what they are talking about half the time.

Dorothy Hull is no stranger to adversity. The 90-year-old mother of eight lives quietly in Martinsburg with her daughter, Darlene Cuddy, filling her weekdays with crossword puzzles and game show reruns, and going out to eat on Saturdays. But her life was not always so tranquil. Hull grew up one of 10 siblings on Tommytown Road off Sharpsburg Pike south of Hagerstown. At 18 years old, she married, moved to Williamsport and started a family with her husband, Daniel Hull. Dorothy Hull recalls the couple's oldest child was about 11 years old when her husband passed away.

The news had traveled fast.  My husband and I had separated. The parking lot behind the elementary school was filled with minivans waiting for the dismissal bell. Several of the carpool-driving moms came to me with kind words and hugs. One of them, an immigrant from another country, said something I didn't quite understand in her halting English. I heard, "Four bedrooms," and I think she might have been offering a place to stay. Her next words were clear, and in the more than 20 years since she spoke, I've not forgotten them.

About four years ago, a tragedy changed the way Tony Bobbitt and his family celebrate Christmas. The Greencastle, Pa., family suddenly lost their 19-year-old son, Kyle, who died from alcohol poisoning before returning from his freshman year at college. “We didn't want to do Christmas the same way anymore after that because it was going to be completely different,” Bobbitt said. Searching for a way to give back to others and honor their son, the Bobbitts found a Christmas Day meal delivery outreach program in Hagerstown that seemed like a fitting tribute to Kyle, who went on several mission trips while he was in high school, his father said.

Jerome Edwards, a teacher at Williamsport High School, said he believes the nation is at a turning point following the Dec. 14 shootings at a Newtown, Conn., elementary school that left 20 children, six adults and the shooter dead. The tragedy means the country needs to do more about not only keeping students safe, but teachers as well, said Edwards, who attended a vesper service at Trinity Lutheran Church in Smithsburg to help people deal with the tragedy. “It strikes dead at home,” said Edwards, when asked what it felt like to hear the news as a teacher.

I was going to write a nice Christmas wish list from many of my friends (and a couple of enemies); however, the events in Newtown, Conn., last week cannot pass without some comment. I will promise a positive upbeat column for next Sunday. Before the right-wingers fire up the Mail Call telephone lines and the local bloggers begin to spit their usual gun rights or anti-gun rights venom, let me just clear the air. You, as an American, have the Constitutional right to “bear and keep arms;” however, you and I, as Americans, do not have the right to terrorize a town and kill innocent human beings.  Don't bring your “one-trick pony” to the debate.

Marines Corps League thanks ball attendees To the editor: The Antietam Detachment of the Marine Corps League, Hagerstown, Md., wishes to thank all the attendees, Marines, associates and friends of Marines for their attendance at the 237th Marine Corps Ball on Nov. 10. We, as you, had a great and memorable time. We all enjoyed the camaraderie and esprit de corps. Please make plans to join us again next year for this formal event and military ceremony. Clark Mayer Hagerstown Remember, stadium is for more than just baseball To the editor: Regarding the encouraging article, “New stadium idea pitched,” I'd like to remind Washington Countians that it will be a new multi-use complex.

The annual meeting of the Washington County Historical Society in January 1967 featured a presentation on the Mason-Dixon Line, which described he hardships experienced by the surveyors as they passed through the mountainous portions of the terrain and encounters with the American Indians in the 1700s. This sparked a suggestion that the State of Maryland might be encouraged to establish a state park to recognize the Mason-Dixon Line. With Victor D. Miller III at the helm as president, and coupled with a renewed interest in establishing an Elizabeth Town village near the Hager House, the historical society board was looking at the possibility of adopting new projects as they went forward.  Judge Irvine Rutledge was appointed chair of a committee to look at potential locations in Washington County, which incorporates about 40 miles of the Mason-Dixon Line, more than any other county.

"Wrath of the Titans" is an excellent reason why audiences shouldn't throw money at bad movies. I'm not even talking about this film, which is doing deservedly poorly against the second week of "The Hunger Games. " I'm talking about "Clash of the Titans," which spent two weeks at No. 1 back in 2010, ultimately making more than $160 million domestically. In its first weekend alone it made upwards of $60 million, owing in no small part to that weekend being Easter and the film getting to take advantage of holiday crowds.

Thirty-five people died in Maryland fires last winter as the state fire marshal is urging residents to heed some simple fire-safety tips to avoid tragedy this season. Much of the danger can be attributed to alternative heating methods for homes and buildings, said Bruce D. Bouch, director of public education and media affairs for the Maryland State Fire Marshal's Office. December 2010 was a particularly tough month for fire-related fatalities, when 17 people died, Bouch said.

It was exceptionally warm early on the morning of April 6, 2010, when Jeffrey Miles stood on a bridge and looked out over the northbound lanes of Interstate 81. Police said Miles threatened suicide and mused about "evil and demons" inside him after officers arrived at 2:30 a.m. Was Miles sincere? Or was the threat a ploy undertaken because he knew authorities were investigating him in connection with the death of a Hagerstown woman? Whatever his intentions, Miles didn't jump and instead left the bridge in police custody.